Footprints
by SYuuri
Summary: After a sudden engagement, many tricks and lies, another stranger wouldn’t cause Kim more troubles, would it? TK AU. CHAP 4.
1. Chapter 1

**Footprints**

**Summary: After a sudden engagement, many tricks and lies, another stranger wouldn't cause Kim more troubles, would it?**

**Disclaimer:**** I do not own Power Rangers.**

**: So one day, GracefulCrane and I were talking about an AU Tommy/Kim story that I honestly haven't been able to think thoroughly until this past few days. A hug and a cookie for my big sis, I hope this story is up to your expectation, G.**

**Now on to the story!**

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**Chapter 1**

Her slender fingers lingered over the mouse and her eyes locked into the computer screen in front of her, the dark colored wallpaper enabling her to see her worried reflection. Worried… she wasn't worry at the slightest, it's more like… being concern… Like a precaution.

She was not the first person who by accident slept with a guy she didn't knew at all, and for all she cared, she wouldn't be the last either. It wasn't her fault that her father chose that evening to drop the biggest bombshell she had ever had. As if her day hadn't been tiring enough, she had also been informed that somehow, anyhow, she was betrothed to a guy who'd hired 3 thugs to beat up her prom date just because she hadn't wanted to be his date in high school. Just in a span of a second, Kimberly Hart was engaged. No champagne for everyone!

"What do you mean?" Kim has asked her father, feeling the walls in her living room apartment moving closer against her, ready to crush her without mercy. Mr. Hart had been living by himself in their old house in Reefside ever since his wife, Kim's mother, passed away a few years prior. The plane crash was something that had turned their world upside down and only by locking herself in her room for 3 days straight, downing almost all Jason's beer and lots and lots of cakes and ice cream that she had finally been able to cope, if only just a little bit.

Of course, if Charles had been an evil father whose hobbies including tormenting his daughter for never calling or stopping by for nearly 6 months, everything would have made more sense. But this was Charles Hart, a fifty six year old man who would never ever hurt a fly, let alone emotionally torturing his child to the next step of insanity by practically handing her to the Winsor family. Kimberly _Winsor_… She cringed just at the thought of changing her last name to a name similar to a famous paint-brush brand.

She had always been aware of her father and Julian Winsor's tight friendship. From the stories she had been told, apparently they'd known each other since they're in diapers. They're neighbors and grew up together, got into the same schools and even fell in love to the same girl twice. Kimberly was genuinely touched, but that didn't automatically make her agree to marry Julian's one and only son, Dave.

Dave Winsor was a type of man who usually would be given 'I-wouldn't-date-him-even-if-he's-the-last-person-on-earth' title by some, no, most women. The only reason some of them would actually go on a date with him was only because of his father's unlimited money. The Winsor was one of the wealthiest families in town and Julian had helped her father a few times.

She was a healthy, independent 26 year old woman. Her father had stopped picking her up from school ever since she was six and now was no different. She didn't need anyone's help to get hitched!

"_He's a charmer alright, but he's nothing but a self-centered pig that does nothing but spend all his parents' money. There're only 3 things that matter most to him: Money, Women, and Power. I wouldn't be surprised if one day he hired an assassin to eliminate his father," Kim nearly shouted to the receiver. It really helped to have such a good friend who'd willingly listen to her outburst at 3 in the morning even when she lived a few thousand miles away. Working as an anchorwoman, Kim could 'see' Trini every night on television, but it was different and she still missed her best friend loads._

"_I doubt he would go that far," Trini replied, the last trace of the sleepiness still lingering in her voice. Kim could picture the pretty Vietnamese sitting in her balcony in her five year old apartment in New York with her yellow slip-on shoes that Kim had given her for her last birthday; hair pulled up to a messy bun. Trini was dating her fellow co-worker and their relationship seemed to be getting serious. Kim couldn't be happier for Trini. She knew Jake was a decent guy and it was kind of a refreshing sight to see Trini with another guy other than her childhood friend, Billy Cranston. _

"_I can't believe this, Trini…," Kim muttered, feeling too frustrated and infuriated to cry. "I mean, for God's sake, this is the 21__st__ century. People don't do that stuff anymore. I never even heard the word 'betrothed' anymore, unless it's in one of those 300 something page romance novels. It's like wearing Madonna's cone-bra to the Oscar," _

"_Hey, I resent that! I loved Madonna!" Trini cut off with a laugh. "And yeah, but it's not the 21__st__ century when your father and Mr. Winsor promised each other that they would be in-laws in the next 2 decades or so," Trini pointed out, sending Kim to think for a moment. _

"_Yeah, and it happened more than ten years ago so I guess I don't have to sweat over it too much," Kim finally concluded. "I mean, what could possibly happen? No written agreement, ring, nothing. I can walk away from it anytime I want," _

The truth was, it was far from a joke _and_ the ring was delivered the next day. Dave didn't even show up in person. Instead, he had one of his men to go to her apartment. That was so romantic, wasn't it? He deserved to win the award for the best boyfriend of the year. Somehow she got the feeling his other goon had picked the ring in Tiffany's.

Right after she opened the small velvet black box, she screamed. She screamed just because the ring she was holding was the solid proof that she, indeed, was engaged… in a way.

Easy to say that the ring was probably one of the most beautiful rings she had ever seen. It was flashy and gorgeous that there's a nanosecond where she put on a dreamy expression, and pictured herself being Mrs. Winsor…

Ten seconds later she mentally kicked herself for that.

And she still hated her future last name.

She picked up the phone and many, many thanks to the yellow pages, successfully found the Winsor residence's phone number. His housemaid told her that the young master wasn't home; that he was in a vacation to Switzerland with some of his buddies. Kim didn't hang up before making sure David would get her message and she almost threatened the poor housemaid to tell Dave what she had said, verbatim no less.

"_Just tell him that Kimberly Hart will not marry him. Not in this life time or the next. It was very_ lovely _of him to send his person to deliver the ring, but please tell him that I couldn't receive it and it will be returned as soon as possible. Thank you,"_

After gaining her full composure, Kim grabbed the box and put it inside her drawer, shoved it into her jeans that would never be worn again since she had went from size 0 to 2 last Summer, locked it and hid the key under the tableside lamp.

Everything was like a blur, coming closer to a dream. She remembered putting on her little red dress though the memory of her getting to Frozen, a club downtown, was like had been erased from her mind. Mindful that it was still school night, she didn't get too much drink… but apparently, the devastation was so catastrophic that 2 shots were enough to get her high.

The next day, instead of waking up in her Hello Kitty comforter, she's in an entirely different room. Everything was done in soft bluish color and it took her less than a minute to realize that she was not alone. When she finally noticed that she didn't have a stitch of clothes on, a pair of longer and bigger legs rubbed against her smaller ones. That clenched her points. She hadn't been exactly living a nun's life, but sleeping with a random stranger was definitely a first.

The fact that the stranger wasn't a bad looking person only elevated her hysteria. Her initial reaction was to scream for help, but then she thought it wouldn't be the best idea. She absolutely had no idea whatsoever as to what to tell him, if he suddenly woke up. Her heart was beating 100 miles per hour and she could almost hear it. Probably he could too since his eyelids fluttered open a second later. Her hands unconsciously clutched the sheets tighter to her chest. This was almost as bad as that time when she was caught cheating in Mrs. Appleby's logarithm test when she was thirteen.

"Hello," The Guy greeted her with a sleepy smile before turning to his side completely. He propped his head against his arm and for the longest moment, they were just staring at each other.

Of all lines that she had in her mind that time, when she finally managed to open her mouth, the only thing came out was,

"I am engaged,"

Silence fell over them like a downy blanket that Kim desperately wanted to get out from. She watched as The Guy's eyes widened considerably at her confession and before she could utter another word, a smirk grew on his face. "Okay… so I assumed that last night was your bachelorette party? It was pretty sad since I don't recall seeing your other girlfriends. All that aside… you were pretty wild. It was amazing,"

Kim's face turned deep red. He'd better be not commenting about their… tryst.

"All your moves…," The Guy closed his eyes briefly and smiled, tempting Kim to shove him off the bed. "Especially when you bent your back…," He was positively _purring_ right now and she did the only thing she had in mind. She swung her leg under the thick covers, aiming for his unmentionable, only to be caught at the last second. His brown eyes snapped open and were immediately focused on her.

"Let go of me,"

His fingers wrapped effortlessly around her left ankle, holding her in place. The Guy seemed to be thoughtful for a while, not minding her glare at one bit. "Are you by any chance a gymnast? Because you know, you're pretty flexible,"

It was said and Kim blew up. "You pervert bastard!"

Unexpectedly, The Guy burst out laughing, his body shaking though he didn't let her leg go. "For your information, I was talking about your performance last night, though I have to say that the after party wasn't so bad either,"

No need to be told what kind of after party The Guy had in mind. "What performance?"

"You don't remember?"

The last thing she remembered was drinking her second whiskey, neat, and then a number from Kiss was on…

"Not exactly a striptease, but come close," The Guy kindly informed and Kim wanted to die then and there. "As I have said, the back bending was pretty awesome. Are you a gymnast?" He inquired again as if he's only asking what time it was now.

"Oh shit," Kim muttered, hands coming up to cover her face.

"You can't be engaged," He remarked, his casual demeanor made her want to crucify him even more. "I don't see any ring,"

"Do you always talk so much in the morning?" Kim retorted grumpily. She didn't need to look at the mirror to know how she looked. Bed hair, smeared make up, dragon breath… and yet he didn't seem to mind. And that's what's intimidating her, big time. That, and the fact that he hadn't given her leg back yet.

"My name's Tommy Oliver," The Guy finally introduced himself, letting go of her leg just to offer his hand.

She stared at his hand. She wanted to ask how they could have ended up in bed, but if she went that far to almost perform an unrated scene in front of 300 people last night… She probably should be relieved that she didn't jump off the bridge under the effect of alcohol.

"I… I have to go," Purposely ignoring him, Kim turned around, dragging the covers along with her and striding to the bathroom. It was only when she had locked the door behind her that she realized she was in his place. Most of his things were neatly put inside the cabinet and his bathroom didn't look as nasty as some bachelors'… but he definitely was living alone. The place lacked of woman's touch.

After embarrassingly realizing that she had been judging someone only from his _bathroom_, she dropped the covers, letting it pool around her feet.

_Damn_, Kim thought. She left her clothes outside.

--

Kim shook her head, trying to clear her mind as the last of memories from five days ago playing in her head like a broken tape. Snapped back to reality, she moved her attention back to the computer screen at the teachers' lounge. She probably shouldn't do her investigation there where every teacher had full access to what she was doing, but she really couldn't care less.

Pointing the cursor to the search engine, Kim clicked on the small box and started typing, feeling her fingers going cold.

Dr. _Tommy Oliver_.

Oh yes, The Guy had a PhD to brag. She didn't mean to look him up, but she couldn't help herself not to. She was just fooling around earlier in the day and found that he was actually listed in the internet.

What had happened a few days ago… it happened because of her careless miscalculation. She hadn't been with anyone for almost 2 years now and since she'd never thought she could have done such reckless thing like that, she'd never considered taking birth control until yesterday morning. And from her memories, what little of them, they didn't use any protection either. She would gladly take a pregnancy test, but from the online information she had been collecting, she should wait at least 10 days after the conception. Which meant she would live her days like a zombie for 5 more days.

She could be pregnant and she thought it was pretty understandable if she wanted to look for information about the one responsible: The Guy.

So not only she was forced to marry someone she loathed, she's also in a risk of getting pregnant to some stranger who only God knows where right now. Oh alright, she knew where The Guy lived, but she wouldn't go up there and tell him to his face that she was carrying his child.

IF she was pregnant, which she doubted she was. At least she HOPED she wasn't.

Kimberly licked her lips that suddenly went dry when the Wiki-page about The Guy finally loaded up. His profile was pretty long, for a guy whose job was digging dinosaur bones. The main picture of him displayed made her stomach lurch. Unfortunately, before _she_ could do some digging, someone called out for her.

"Kim, they're here," Mrs. Walker informed, her head peeking from the slightly opened door.

Sighing in defeat, Kim glanced at The Guy's picture for the last time before closing the window. First thing first, she needed to take care of the new student. Next week would be officially 2 years she had been working in Angel Grove Kindergarten. She loved working with little children and the job didn't take up all of her day; she was still have time to teach gymnastics in the weekend.

Picking up her books and glasses, Kim moved her chair back and stood up. She pushed the door open and soon was greeted by the sweetest smile of a five year old brunette. Her hair was pulled up to a ponytail with a pink and white ribbon. Her smile was contagious and Kim was quick to find herself smiling. "Hello there,"

"Hi," The girl replied shyly.

"My name's Kimberly Hart and I'm going to be your new teacher," Kim said, leaning over and put a comforting hand on the little girl's shoulder.

"Should I start to worry that you're going to be Violet's teacher?"

Kim froze and tried as hard as she could, she just couldn't find her voice. The Guy who she had been Googling was standing less than 2 meters away from her. The Guy who she never thought would see again, especially not THERE. "What are you doing here?"

"Well, I was told to come at 6.30 and see a Miss Hart. Are you Miss Hart?" Tommy asked with a grin and a deep frown soon marred her face. He looked very much energized; clad in black dress shirt and dark brown jacket with a pair of jeans. If only the situation had been different, she might give him a second glance. It's not everyday that she met a sexy single parent.

Except that she wasn't sure if he was single; he did, in fact, have a daughter.

And of course, there's the engagement.

And she couldn't forget that he probably had AIDS and had given it to her because _she_ had been so stupid.

Or that she's probably pregnant with his child.

Could her life get any worse than it already had?

* * *

**: I perfectly aware that I have TONS of stories that I haven't finished. (Especially TSTM&TS… It's only 1 chapter left and I haven't touched it for ages!). Shame on me. I want to continue them, but as I've said before, the mood just isn't exactly there and I don't want to mess the updates. So I hope this could tie you up till I can get around to finish them. I'm so sorry. **

**Feel free to throw me your shoes. I know I deserve it. **

**: As for Footprints, more will happen in the next chapters, and more will be explained also in the chapters following this one. Thanks for reading and please let me know what you think :)**

**- Yuuri**


	2. Chapter 2

**Footprints**

**Disclaimer:**** Power Rangers is not mine. **

**: Thanks for the reviews and for being so understanding. I hope we're off to a good start! **

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**Chapter 2**

* * *

Kim felt the hair behind her neck stand as she was filling in some forms. It could be the air conditioner although she thought it was because of his presence that she's having goose bumps. It turned out that she didn't have to use the computer at all or try to look for him, since he's coming to her himself.

She had been told about the new student last week, and God help her, she actually remembered that the student's name was Violet Oliver. Her best defense was to say that it was a pretty rough week she had been having that it's pretty difficult to put two and two together. Then again, coincidences like that never happened in real life. Not in her life, anyway. But hold on, her so called boring life had taken an interesting turn lately, starting a week ago when her father delivered a bombshell right into her arms.

Resistance was her initial reaction. However, her father just laughed and waved it away like it was nothing. Like sending his only daughter to the arms of an almost stranger was something he did everyday. Sadly, Kim also knew that in spite of the promise her dad had made, Julian Winsor had been a great help when his automobile company experiencing a rough patch 5 years ago. He had a debt that as far as Kim knew, was still due. She was trying to help as much as she could, but they didn't pay her much for teaching 30 five-year-olds. Her last solution was to give Dave a visit, as much as she didn't want to see his face. Maybe they could negotiate and everyone would go to bed with a smiling face.

"How long have you been teaching?" It was a polite question but it still made Kim jump.

"Will be 2 years next week," She answered, happy that her voice was even. It was very helpful that there wasn't any trace of memory from that particular night without her having to intentionally block it out, or she wouldn't be able to look at him in the eye. She should be decking him for taking advantage of her drunken condition, but she would save it for another time.

"We just moved from Angel Grove 3 weeks ago," The Guy said. Somehow it took lots of efforts for Kim to address him with his real name. "It's pretty tough for Violet, but I think she'll do just fine. She's adapting quickly and I'm pretty sure you're going to make her feel at home,"

Kim lifted her head from the table and soon regretted her decision. The Guy was winking at him. He did it in a friendly manner, not flirtatiously, but it still made butterflies in her stomach do somersaults… Not THAT kind of butterflies, just a really uncomfortable sinking feeling right in her guts. "I will try my best. And the rest of the class is looking forward to meeting a new friend so you don't have to worry,"

"Do you have time this evening?"

"You've got to be kidding me," If only there weren't any teachers around, she would have screamed. They both didn't exactly have the best track records for a first impression and Kim found it difficult to act civilize towards him, let alone try establishing a friendship.

Tommy raised his hands up to the air. "You don't have to freak out,"

"I'm not freaking out," Kim put the pen down and tilted up her chin, hands firmly planted on either hips. "I'm perfectly calm,"

"Then breathe,"

"I _am_ breathing," Kim said curtly. "And you're crazy,"

"It was only a question alright," Tommy said with a quiet laughter. "You don't have to overreact,"

"Well, I told you the other day that I was engaged," Kim continued under her breath, for once feeling a bit grateful of her father's rash action. If Tommy wanted to talk about the event the other night, it just wasn't going to happen. End of the story.

"Yeah, yeah," Tommy smirked, shooting his eyes at Kim's bare finger. Before she could protest, his eyes grew somber. "No, actually, I'm serious. We need to talk,"

"We will not discuss anything relates to that night," Kim moved closer and hissed. "That was totally an accident and it won't happen again, ever. We will pretend like it never happened. Is that so hard to understand?" Tommy smirked at her, obviously having his mind at the wrong thing. "Oh geez, I can't even believe that you're a father. Aren't you embarrassed? At you kid? Your wife?"

"She's… she's not around,"

"Well, obviously," Kim snapped back, eyes rolling. "Or you wouldn't be here at the first place," Kim glared at him and turned away.

"So what do you say?"

"Can we not talk? Because I have to tell you that a mentally unstable woman is no fun, at all,"

"It's not about what happened that night, if it could make you happy," His chocolate eyes twinkled with highly misplaced delight that boiled Kim's blood even more.

Kim eyed him hesitantly. "Then say whatever you want to say right now, or don't talk at all,"

Tommy shifted his weight to his other foot and started to look uncomfortable. He rubbed the back of his neck and for a brief second he looked like another new student in a new school. When he stepped closer, Kim instinctively moved backwards. He held his arms up. "Can't do that. There's almost no privacy here,"

"Fine," Kim said in decisive tone, leaving no rooms for any arguments. Her impatience had reached its core. Their voices had begun to get carried away and from their right side, Mrs. Bloomer was peering over her thick glasses. The brunette offered her a self-conscious smile before putting her signature at the bottom of the form and turning to face him, almost shoving the paper into his chest. "Don't talk at all then,"

Tommy released a heavy sigh, probably had started being fed up with her attitude. Kim didn't really care, because she had far more important stuff that needed her attention. Of course, Tommy _was_ one of those problems. However, before she took some tests, she would pretend like he's just another father.

All of a sudden, Tommy's voice boomed all over the room. "Fine, if you really want me to tell you how last night was a really wonderful evening-," Kim grabbed his arm and with a surprising strength coming from a woman as petite as her, peeled Tommy off the counter and dragged him along with her out into the hallway, uncaring if they had some audiences.

"What the hell is your problem?" Kim spat, pointing her finger in front of his face.

"Now, now, watch that attitude, Miss Hart," Tommy reminded, his head tilted to where Violet was admiring a colorful poster a few feet away. "Okay, how about this afternoon after the class ends? Will that be okay? It's not everyday I make such a graceful offer,"

Kim's eyes narrowed to a thin line, her lips pursed tightly. As much as she wanted to lunge forward and tackle him, a small voice inside her head told her that it wasn't worth it. _Breathe, Kim… the kids are watching… _"Fine. After school,"

"Great, it's a deal then," Tommy confirmed and she answered it with a nod. Then she watched his eyes fill with mirth and the corner of his mouth curve into a lopsided grin, which now that she thought about it, was often displayed whenever he had something up his sleeve. Tommy suddenly leaned over, invading her personal space. His warm breath tickled the side of her face when he whispered, "I wasn't lying when I said it was amazing though,"

Kim scowled and Tommy turned away before she managed to fire back. Biting her words, her eyes followed him walked to Violet, knelt in front of the little girl, and gave her a hug.

--

"Here Miss Hart," Violet walked up to Kim, a pile of coloring books in her small hands.

"Thank you, Violet," Kim put down the eraser and turned sideways to face her newest student. She accepted the books and put them on the desk. Cold war with Tommy aside, she genuinely liked to have Violet as a part of her small class. She was smart, quick and not afraid to speak out her mind which somehow reminded her of herself when she was a kid. "So how do you like your new school?"

"It was fun," Violet answered, her small arms swinging on her side. "Although I don't like Matthew Smith. He kept pulling my ponytail over and over again!"

"You know, maybe he likes you," Kim commented with a small smile.

"He forced me to show him my locket although I didn't want to," Violet went on, crocodile tears starting to fill her big, hazel eyes. "And now it's broken,"

"Oh Sweetie… let me see it, could I?" Kim leaned her hips against the edge of the table and pulled the little girl to come closer to her. Now it had started to make sense why Violet was so quiet after the recess.

"I kicked his leg," Violet declared fiercely. "I hate him,"

Laughing, Kim leaned over to wipe her tears. "You know that violence will not solve anything, so next time why don't you come to me and I'll talk to him?"

Violet shoved her hand inside her front pocket and in a slow motion pulled out the broken necklace and put in on Kim's palm. Kim studied it for a moment. It was beautiful; a classic sterling silver oval shaped locket with filigree design. Her fingers brushed lightly over Violet's initial carved on the front side of the locket.

She instinctively opened the accessory and what she saw threw her. "What-,"

"Daddy!" Violet's joyful scream brought her feet back to the earth and kept any bewilderment thoughts from clouding her mind, if only for a while. Her eyes moved from the jewelry in her hand to meet Tommy's and she could see that she wasn't the only one who's taken aback. Tommy had a lot to explain and he knew it.

Kim rose from her seat and walked to where Tommy was standing, Violet clinging tightly to his hand. She closed the locket and handed it to Tommy. "The chain snapped,"

Tommy accepted the necklace and after fumbling with it for a few seconds, looked down at his daughter. "Princess, why don't you go play outside for a moment? I'll be right there,"

"Okay, promise me you'll fix my locket," Violet looked up at her father with imploring eyes and after receiving a nod and assuring smile, waved goodbye to Kim enthusiastically. "Bye Miss Hart!"

After Violet bounced out of the classroom and was out of sight, Kim immediately swirled around and faced Tommy, the one dollar question shining in her eyes for him to see while her heart started pounding faster. "What the hell was that?"

"Okay, this is strange," Tommy began with a coy smile.

"Tell me about it," Kim huffed, arms folded tightly across her chest. "Is _that_ what you wanted to tell me?"

"Actually, I didn't plan to tell you anything about Amy," Tommy said, his hand patting his pocket where he had put the locket. "But well, since you have seen it I figured it would be pretty awkward if I just walked away. Not that I need to explain myself to you though," He quickly added.

"Amy?"

"My ex-wife,"

"That was Amy?" Kim pushed. The woman in the picture looked so much like her that it wasn't even funny. If only she ever dyed her hair red, which she never did, she would probably think it was her inside the locket.

"Color you surprise, huh?" He shrugged. Tommy had changed his attire from earlier this morning and now clad in light blue jersey shirt and khakis which made him look less dangerous.

"Okay, let me get this straight. So you had a wife who looked like the exact duplicate of me?"

"Not exactly," Tommy answered and his face visibly relaxed. "Like you have already seen, Amy was a natural redhead. Besides, she's way taller than you,"

"Well, forgive me if I'm short," Her forehead creased at his statement. "Where is she? She's not-,"

"She's gone when Violet was a year old. A fatal heart complication," Tommy softly confirmed for her. He looked down and closed his eyes. "You took it better that I've expected. Imagine how surprised I was when I first saw you that night,"

Tommy smiled thoughtfully. If he's still clinging to his late wife, he definitely wasn't showing it since he seemed… content. Kim's brain started working. The details about the sex were fuzzy, but now she might get the answer she had been asking herself since the morning after. "So was that why you.., you know, why we," she swallowed hard and casually looked around to make sure no one was near. "Why we slept together that night? I mean, I was obviously drunk and you probably saw me humiliating myself up there…,"

"You're babbling," He chided gently. "You're wondering if the similarity between you and Amy was the reason we hooked up that night."

"Yeah… well… there's always a possibility," Kim shrugged her shoulders, the fact hadn't sunk in yet. "Do you think I probably have a twin sister that I never knew before? Because we looked almost identical. I mean, what's the odd?"

"To say I was shocked when I saw you was an understatement, but if you're thinking I'm still wallowing in self pity, you're wrong," Tommy grinned somewhat coyly. "Amy was my first love and it was so hard to see her… in pain, every single day…you know what I mean? It's probably for the best. She's not in pain any longer and that what matters. I loved her and I will always love her, but life goes on and I've got over it,"

"I'm sorry," Kim softly said. As someone who had her own experience of losing someone dear, she could understand how tough the situation must have been, for both Tommy and Violet.

"It's okay. Violet was so young when Amy's gone so she doesn't have that much memories of her mother with her," Tommy lowered his gaze; his voice was tinged with slight bitterness. "Though I think I should have warned you sooner, just in case she'd said something,"

Kim went quiet. That explained the inquisitive stare Violet had been sending her way through out the lesson today. She acted like she wanted to ask something but always backed down at the last second. Thinking about the tot… Kim didn't recall seeing her back then when she'd spent the night at Tommy's house, which was definitely a good thing. Committing adultery with her right next door was just wrong in so many ways.

"Are we really having a conversation right now?" Tommy asked, mildly amused. "Because you usually couldn't talk to me without glaring or threatening to bat me with your shoes,"

Rolling her eyes, Kim turned on her heels, half expecting Tommy to follow her into the classroom. "So was that the important thing you wanted to tell me?"

"I told you I didn't plan on telling you that. Not until we got to know each other better anyway,"

Her mind was still occupied with their unique predicament, but his latter statement didn't go unnoticed. "So what is it then?"

When she caught him grinning like a Cheshire cat, she suddenly engulfed with a really bad feeling which she had come to get used to, since everything seemed to be in a whirlwind lately. But still, that smirk gave her creeps. "You left your stuff in my house,"

"What stuff?" Kim questioned guardedly.

"Your pale yellow Victoria's Secret panties," He put a small blue paper bag on the table beside her, a smug, satisfied smile on his face. "I had it laundered," With that said, he smiled indulgently and swiftly slipped out of the class before she blew up for the second time that day.

"Was that him?" Kate Sanders walked in ten seconds after Tommy left the class. Long blonde hair and crystal blue eyes, Kate looked more mature than her actual age.

"What was him?" Kimberly, who hadn't completely recovered, asked.

"You know, everybody was talking about him. Saying that the father of the new student was a hottie,"

With everything she had in her plate right now, she really couldn't care less if Tommy was blazing hot or not. Maybe she _would_ begin to care, if in 5 days the test turned out to be positive.

--

After putting all the dishes away and finishing all the house chores, Kim moved to the love seat, a box of ice cream in hands. Anyone who said that diamond was girls' best friend was wrong. Ice cream was, next to some Godiva chocolates that she could afford without messing up her budget. Sometimes she wished she could do something more useful when she was feeling stressful, maybe working out or cleaning up the apartment… but no, the best medicine was to eat. The higher the calorie, the better.

"Hi, Dad," Kim said after her father picked up the phone. "It's Kim,"

"_Well, hello there. What's the occasion? Not that I'm complaining," _

"Yeah, actually, I want to talk about-,"

"_Have you got the ring? Dave called me the other day and told me that he had given you the ring," _

"Oh, he has got back from Switzerland? How's the vacation?" Kim asked sardonically.

"_What Switzerland? Anyway, Dave called me and said he couldn't wait to be my son in law. Had been waiting for it ever since he was seven,"_ Mr. Hart laughed. If he was hoping Kim would join him, that would never going to happen.

"I don't want to get married, Dad," Kim complained. "I mean, it's Dave Winsor, of all people! I know that he seems to be like a dutiful son in front of anyone, but seriously, that guy has some serious problems. And I know that Mr. Winsor had helped you a great deal dealing with the entire crisis a few years back and I also know that you wanted to return his favor, but encouraging me to marry his son is just… not right,"

"_You perfectly know that's not the reason,"_ Her father said tiredly, sounding deeply disappointed that Kim felt terrible for accusing him like that. _"I made a promise and you should have known that I never take my words back. Why not giving him a chance? Try going out with him and getting to know each other better. Look who it works. You two used to play together when you're little," _

"It's been 20 years and you never even said a word to me," Kim nearly whined, feeling like a little girl she once was. "What if I have had a boyfriend? You can't possibly think I would leave him to marry some guy,"

"_Well, as far as I'm concern, you don't have any," _

"I never said I didn't have a boyfriend," Without thinking twice, the words passed her lips smoothly. Knowing her father like she did, he would never let this down.

"_Oh? So you're dating someone and never said a word to me_," Her father half-challenged, borrowing her words short moments ago. His tone was a mixture between surprise and disbelief, not that she could blame him. _"Who?"_

"Well, there's this guy…," _Think, Kim, think! What guy?_ There wasn't even one guy that either not married or not in relationship in her workplace, let alone the gym. The oldest guy in there was twenty three user. Would her father freak out if she told him she's going out with another woman?

"_Yes, who is he?" _

"He's…," Use your brain, Kim! Jason? No, Jason talked with her father twice a month so her dad would know immediately that she was lying. Who??

"_Kimberly?" _Her father was using a tone that reminded her those moments when she was six and had a handful of candies in her pockets.

"Tommy,"

Shit, shit, shit!!

"_Tommy?" _

"Yes, Thomas Oliver," Kim dropped her head, hitting her forehead against the surface of the table over and over again before resting her chin on her left hand. Tommy. How on earth could she say it was him? Why couldn't she say that she and Kate were dating?

"_Tell me about this Oliver guy," _Her father pursued.

"Well, he's… Tommy is… he's a paleontologist," Kim answered, her voice was muffled against her hand. What else did Wikipedia say? There's a picture of him in that ridiculous brown vest, then his mini biography… "Well, Tommy's hot,"

"_Excuse me?" _

Great, was there anything else more pathetic than 'Tommy's hot'? It was pretty understandable if her father thought she was on drugs or something. "I mean, he's a great guy overall. He has a daughter named Violet,"

"_He has a daughter? How old is he?"_ He spoke as though the man she was _supposed _to be dating had a granddaughter instead of a daughter.

"Umm…," That profile...she must have remembered something beside his blood type and hometown… "He's 28," _Possibly_, she added in the privacy of her mind. "You know, brown eyes, brown hair, tall… Tommy's great," Kim said lamely. Her eyes reverted to a bag of unpacked groceries on the kitchen counter. Among the fruits, veggies, toothpaste, lots of snacks and the latest edition of Cosmo, laid a box of pregnancy test that would come handy in the next five days. Living in a town as small as Angel Grove where everybody knew everybody, Kim found buying a small pack of pregnancy test was such a difficult task that couldn't be taken lightly.

"_Okay, then when do I get to meet this Oliver the Great?" _Mr. Hart half joked.

"One day…," _Never_, Kim thought.

"_How about Friday?" _

"Friday?" Kim repeated hesitantly and did the math. "Isn't that like two days from today?"

"_Yes, is there something wrong?" _

_Yes! Everything is wrong!_ "Well, actually…,"

"_Since I'm going to meet Julian on Monday and maybe he and I could have a little talk…,"_ Her father left his sentence hanging and Kim was quick to pick up his meaning.

"Friday's good," Kim hurriedly agreed, not wasting another second. This was the opportunity she had been waiting for; a chance for her to get out of this arranged married.

"_Great," _

"Yeah, great,"

Kim hung up after her father did and she buried her face into her hands. Where the hell that Tommy Oliver came from? This wasn't great at the slightest. This was a disaster. A tragedy.

She touched her face, realizing she had forgotten asking her father if she had a twin sister she never knew she had.

Sighing, Kim reached for yesterday's newspaper and flipped the pages until she found the one she was looking for. The advertisement took one third of the page, with black colored background and fancy gold lettering.

_**CLUB SION, Guaranteed Companionship**_

Maybe this was the right time to give the male escorts ad a more serious second look.

--

**: So, will Kim give the ad a try? I think she will, haha! ****Since the finals are approaching, I might not update anything for a while so I hope this could hold you up till then. ****Please let me know what you think, thanks. Cheers!  
**

**- Yuuri **


	3. Chapter 3

**Footprints**

**Disclaimer:**** Power Rangers doesn't belong to me.**

**: Thanks for reviewing the previous chapter! I dedicate this chapter to my sister, who offered to read this chapter for me despite of her dislike for Power Rangers. And for whom I wrote in an inside joke.**

* * *

**Chapter 3**

* * *

Kim would have hung up already if only the person on the other end hadn't picked up after the second ring. The man wasn't talking in American accent. She had watched lots of movies that had Gerard Butler in them to recognize the accent the operator was using. She had a stack of DVDs to proof her loyalty to the Scottish actor. A few seconds later and Ralph informed that he would assist her in fulfilling her request.

As someone who was relatively new at this kind of thing, Kimberly really didn't know the drill about the details of how it works. In the end, it turned out that she didn't even have to leave her apartment. By simply going online and logging in to Sion Club's website, she had all the access to everything provided. Starting from a complete biography, pictures and high resolution videos.

Alas, the fact that her internet had been a nuisance for the last 5 days meant that she was as good as dead. If only she didn't have a dinner date with some of her fellow teachers tomorrow night, she would have no problem hailing a cab and going to the Club.

There're wasn't so many options left and time was running out, that's why she ended up embarrassingly explained to dear Ralph about her request. Being a professional, Kim couldn't sense any trace of skepticism from Ralph. But of course, they probably had had masses of case far worse than hers.

That was yesterday… and now she was standing in her living room, staring rather blatantly at the guy Sion Club had sent. Kirby came two hours early, just like she had told Ralph. To say that Ralph had done an excellent job would be an understatement of the year.

Tall, preferably 6'? _Checked_.

Slightly tanned with spiked, dark brown hair? _Checked_.

Earrings? _Checked_.

High cheekbones and strong jaw? _Checked_.

Goatee? _Checked_.

Sion Club was no joke. Kirby even had on a pair of glasses and wore a black dress shirt and slacks, just like she wanted. Last but not least, he was easy on the eyes. He _had_ to be, since she had claimed that fact twice in front of her father.

Everything would be perfect if only his eyes were not blue; deep, crystal blue that could defeat Elijah's captivating eyes anytime. She remembered asking for a brown eyed guy but the person standing before her had blue eyes. Blue!

"Umm…," Kim began, uncertain of what to say. Then she decided against being bashful and just stated the truth. She paid for the guaranteed satisfaction which was not there at the moment. "Kirby, right? Actually, I think there had been a mistake since I told Ralph that I wanted brown eyes, not blue. No offense, since you have really beautiful eyes, but that's not what I need tonight,"

Kirby's thick, well-plucked eyebrows rose a little. "Well, I don't know… you're Kimberly Hart right? And this is the right address…,"

"No, you're at the right place. What I meant is… I asked for brown eyes, and not blue," Kim sighed, her painted peach lips forming a grin. "Or perhaps those are contact lenses?" She added with a touch of hope in her voice. Kirby was _it_. He was good looking, obviously, and those extra glasses made him look smart and sexy. The two top buttons of his shirt were undone, baring his Apache tattoo on his sculpted chest to her view. The tattoo and the earrings effectively provided that bad boy impression.

"You want me to wear contacts?"

Or maybe he wasn't as smart as he looked.

"I'm asking if you wear contact lenses," Kim repeated patiently. "Do you?"

"No,"

"Well… Okay, there's no time. Just tell my father that you're wearing contact lenses if he asked you about the color of your eyes,"

Kirby snorted. "Come on, will he notice that small thing? It's no big deal, I promise you. I'll handle it like a dream so you can relax. It's not the first time I pose as someone's boyfriend," He pulled out a card she'd given him earlier from his pocket and read it loud enough for her only to hear. "Thomas Oliver, a 28 year old paleontologist and a father of one daughter named Violet. She's currently studying in Angel Grove Kindergarten and is one of your students," He paused and regarded her with unhidden curiosity. "You really need to provide more information, Missy,"

"Yeah well, I didn't really have time to do more. I just got home forty five minutes ago," Kim replied somewhat grouchily. "We still have time, let's go through the details now,"

"Ralph did mention something about paleontologist so I did some research," Kirby informed and snickered at her reaction. "I'm a professional at what I am doing. Besides, posing as a dinosaur guy isn't all that difficult,"

"Are you sure?" Kim questioned. "Seriously, if this dinner turns to a disaster I won't be paying you a dime,"

"Positive," Kirby nodded firmly. "Now tell me more about this Thomas Oliver guy in relation with you, please,"

"Yeah well…," Kim massaged the bridge of her nose. The truth was, she didn't know anything about him, aside from his loss a few years ago and she wouldn't dream of bringing that one up. "We have dated for almost a year now; let's say it's a year and a half…"

--

Tommy stared at the ceiling of his living room, his mind in a whirlwind. Violet was staying with his mother for the weekend and the house was unusually quiet without her excited cries and Dora the Explorer's theme song on the television.

After leaving his job as the Associate Director for Research at the Reefside Museum, he had been offered to be a lecturer in the FSU. But moving was just not possible at the moment so now he was considering taking a teaching job as a science teacher in one of Angel Grove's local high schools. He's first interested in dinosaurs and extinct animals at a very young age. Sharing the same occupation as his, his dad had had an incredible career and obviously, Tommy inherited that side from him. While he didn't know about everybody's kids, his first word mastered was 'dino' instead of 'dad' or 'mom'. In his spare time when he wasn't busy with his works or Violet, he enjoyed doing martial arts a great deal, karate in particular.

He quietly reached for the latest issue of National Geographic which had a four page feature on him and his latest research concerning the evolution of Mesozoic vertebrates and the changes in land ecosystem. It had been almost 2 years and while he should have been used to it by now, he still hated to see himself on either magazine or papers. Sighing, he threw the magazine back and reached for his car key.

--

"Karate has always been my passion ever since I was 5 years old," Kirby said while wiping the corner of his mouth with the napkin, a shit-eating grin plastered across his face. "Of course, aside from digging and playing with dirt," He added with a good-natured laugh. "My old man taught me how to collect stuff about three or four months after I managed to walk. I had this small bag to put my findings—all fossils and pretty stones mostly."

While Kimberly didn't have any idea where the karate story came from, the way he talked and collaborated his tale ever so smoothly and believable made Kim stare at him in awe. It was such a huge loss that her father couldn't make it tonight and instead, sending her Aunt Kerry to interrogate her so called boyfriend. Aunt Kerry wasn't her favorite person in the world because she was so nosy _anyone_ could barely stand her. Poking into someone else's life seemed to be as natural to her as breathing and if Kim were her father, she couldn't have thought of a better candidate to substitute him other than Aunt Kerry.

"And I promised Kim I would take her to Egypt one day," Kirby turned to her, putting his hand on top of hers and gave it a squeeze. "Right, Baby?"

Kirby wasn't quite so subtle at pretending being an affectionate boyfriend and his leer and sweet endearment made her shudder. Still, she played along. "Definitely,"

"I still think it was so insanely sweet how you two met," The thirty five year old redhead gushed while idly twirling her forks around her pasta thoughtfully. "I'm not talking about the fire because it was horrible, but about you two… for Kim to be trapped on the second floor and not being able to escape… Yeah, that part wasn't exactly lovely either," Aunt Kerry amended with a frown. "You know what I mean,"

Kim had told her aunt that Kirby was a trespasser that had risked his life and helped her when there was a fire in her building last year. The creative juice wouldn't flow that night, so she snagged a random story from Cosmo, knowing her helplessly romantic aunt would appreciate it a great deal.

"So I heard you had a daughter?" Aunt Kerry queried again.

"Violet is five," Kirby answered, nodding his head yes. They had rehearsed this part before and even fabricated a few things since Kim's knowledge about the Olivers was zero, nada. "She wanted to tag along but my sister came from Reefside and she had missed her tons. Violet is Aunt Christy's number one niece,"

"Forgive me for asking, but what happened with her mother?"

"She's gone when Violet was still a baby," Kirby said after setting the fork down. Kim could have sworn she saw tears brimming in his blue eyes so yes; he was that good of an actor. "It had been a winding road, but we passed through it. And now," The clutch he had around Kim's free hand was a bit too tighter. "I'm happy,"

Fortunately, Kim was saved from having to comment by the sudden ring of the doorbell. She gently yet swiftly extricated her hand from his grasp and stood up. She seriously wanted to punch his light off when Kirby pulled her down as if to give her a kiss. She finally puckered her lips and made kissing sound, uncaring if Aunt Kerry saw the unusual display of affection.

--

As the light turned red and the car slowed down, today's event returned in full force. Of course, there's no 100 percent guarantee that Kate was right, but she had piqued his inquisitiveness. He knew himself well enough to know that he wouldn't be able to have a goodnight sleep before knowing the truth.

Unlike before in AGK, he was the only man in place today. It was pretty awkward for him but he had managed to keep cool and not go to his car and wait there with the rest of the mothers until the pretty blonde he recalled from Violet first day approached him. As dense as he was, her intention wasn't hidden very well and as much as he longed for a woman's touch, he still had lots on his plate to chew these days to consider dating again.

When school time was finally over and the kids emerged from the class, Kim shot him her patented dirty look. Not exactly an attitude anyone would expect from a kindergarten teacher, but it did him good to know that in spite of her snotty attitude towards him, she was one decent teacher. Violet had been going on and on about her new teacher each night when he tucked her in. He could only shake his head. He had been half wishing that the other day's event had shaken Kimberly's wall, if only just a little, but it's obvious that he had been wrong about that.

Kate caught Kim's deadly stare as well and what came out of her mouth a second later startled him and completely threw him off guard.

"_Don't mind her. She has been experiencing a terrible mood swings lately," _

"_It's that time of the month, huh?" He tried to joke. _

"_Possibly, or maybe because she was trying so hard to cover that she's expecting," Kate finished in a hushed tone before clamping her mouth shut. Looking guilty all of a sudden, she looked at him a bit bashfully. _

_But what had said was said and his ears pricked at the slip. What the hell… "Excuse me?" He asked again but it's unlikely that the young blonde would go further into details. "What do you mean by expecting?" Tommy smiled warmly, trying to charm the teacher. Licking his lips, it was his turn to be kicked by the guilt. It worked. _

"_I found a test pack in her bag," Kate finally caved in and whispered, her fingers twirling a strand of her golden hair. "You know, a pregnancy test," _

"_She's pregnant? I didn't know she was married," Or engaged. Then maybe Kim was telling him the truth after all. _

_Kate laughed and waved her hand as if he had said something really ridiculous. "Nah... Kim isn't the marrying type, and as far as I know, that girl's single, which makes matter more confusing. But don't mind me. I tend to over think every situation, such a drama queen I am,"_

The thought had refused to leave his mind even when he was driving home; Violet sat beside him—hands planted on the window and eyes wandered about the new neighborhood. He was so engrossed with the news that he missed the traffic light.

His head hung up in shame upon remembering that day. Had he been 3 seconds late hitting the brake, he probably would have sent someone flying. Mentally kicking himself for being so reckless, he jumped off the car to help the man he'd almost hit. Saying that the older guy was as mad as hell would have been an understatement. He looked ready to bat Tommy with the umbrella in his hands, eyes blazing with repressed anger. Finally after mumbling about how times had changed, global warming and resolutely rejecting Tommy's offer to take him to hospital, the man continued walking.

Back to here and there, the question resurfaced as he stopped and killed the engine. He had reached his destination. Was Kim really pregnant? And if she was… was it _his_?

--

"Dad?" Kim gasped, stunned, as she looked at the familiar figure standing in the corridor. "What are you doing here?"

"I just dropped by for a quick hi," Mr. Hart said and stepped inside after giving his daughter a one-armed hug. It was then when Kim noticed that he was favoring his left foot. "Where is he? Where's your boyfriend?"

"Um… he's inside talking with Aunt Kerry," Kim replied and glanced at the living room that doubled as the dining room. Now that the real man was there, Kirby must not mess things up! She had been disappointed yet relieved when her father called, informing that there's an immediate meeting with the Canadian investors. "Are you okay, Dad? What's wrong with your foot?"

"I don't have much time left. I gotta run in a few moments," He said and looked at his watch. "Besides I don't want to ruin your wonderful evening,"

Before uttering another word, Kim felt a strong arm wrap around her shoulder and she craned her head to see that Kirby had moved from the living room to her side. Looking passed his shoulder, she found her aunt talking in her cellphone in the balcony for some privacy.

"Good evening, Sir," Her faux boyfriend greeted in a sing a song kind of way and extended his hand.

Then it happened; so fast that she didn't even have the time to blink.

"Good God, aren't you Jacob's son?" Her father eagerly caught Kirby's hand and pulled him forward to study him closer. "Jacob Patterson? There's no way I could forget those eyes. You don't recognize me? I'm Charles Hart!"

By the time her father had introduced himself, everything finally sunk in. This couldn't be happening! Not now! Among all people in this universe, her escort had to be Jacob Patterson's son-- whoever Jacob Patterson was. Her heart swelled with panic and she felt the sudden need to run away from the situation, only she knew that it was not possible.

"Um… I don't...," A little dubious, Kirby shot Kim a questioning glance, his blue eyes pleading for silent help.

"Come on! You were there when your father and I played golf two years ago. Your father would have lost the game if only he didn't make the last shot,"

She's doomed. Stricken panic, Kim desperately fought for control. Glancing sideways, a half relief washed through her body since Aunt Kerry was still talking on the phone; that they were out of her hearing range.

"What on earth are you doing here?" Her dad gave Kirby a fatherly pat on the shoulder and Kim's eyes went saucer when his gaze reverted to her; his question in his eyes for her to see. "Is he-,"

**Ringggg….**

_Saved by the bell! _Immediately disentangled her petite body from Kirby grasp, Kim walked past her father and swung the door open. Relief morphed to fear and her eyes widened in pure horror when the uninvited visitor turned out to be Tommy Oliver. The _real_ Tommy Oliver, in the flesh.

"Kimberly?"

"Kim?" The second sound belonged to her father. Nothing could shock her more, not even if the doorbell rang again and Nate Berkus was standing right there with his friendly, charming smile, offering his kind help to do some apartment makeover. "You!"

The former gymnast literally jumped when her father's voice boomed through her. Oh well, _that_ had successfully shocked her more. Swirling around, she watched as her father limping forward towards the unwanted visitor. "What the hell are you doing here? Do you even know this guy?" He pointed the question to his daughter who wanted nothing more than a hole to suddenly appear under her feet and swallowed her whole.

"Good evening, Sir," Tommy said politely and either he just didn't or wouldn't pay Kim's fervent head shaking more attention, he went on. "My name's Tommy Oliver,"

_Chicken shit. _

Kim felt lightheaded. A few meters away was her aunt, who, fortunately, still walked around in circles in the balcony although her eyes was plastered at entire scene inside. Kirby was still standing quietly and looked well composed, even, and last, her father was seeing red when Tommy --Tommy! What the hell he was doing there??—out of the blue popped up from out of nowhere, unannounced nonetheless.

"You're Thomas Oliver? Are you dating this guy? Forget it, Kim. You can't date this man. He's lack of politeness and discipline. He has no respect for the older generations… you would get yourself killed just by hanging around him!"

Genuinely confused, Kim glanced back at Tommy who felt like had been slapped by each accusation the older man threw his way. "I don't…,"

"I will tell you once and only, Kimberly," Charles reminded grimly. "I. Do. Not. Approve. I guess I know what I'm going to say to Julian on Monday,"

"But-,"

"Good night, to both of you," Charles said, inclined, and nodded at Kirby briefly before retreating as fast as he could with a twisted ankle.

And then there were silence.

Kim was seriously ready to go to the kitchen, grab a butcher knife and pushed it into Tommy's chest. How dare he came here and ruined her night?

"Kimberly?" After a long pause, Kirby finally came closer and touched her rigid shoulder.

"Kirby, just… leave," She muttered, feeling weak kneed. "I… thanks for coming tonight and I'll take care of the administration first thing tomorrow,"

"You're gonna be okay?"

"I don't know," She answered frankly. The situation was so excruciating she felt nauseous. "Don't worry about me,"

He leaned down and gave her a chaste peck on the cheek, and then he squeezed her shoulder sympathetically. "Just in case you need moral supports, you know where to find me,"

Kim nodded, not really looking into his eyes.

"Hey man, I saw you in Nat Geo. Nice vest you got there," was his parting goodbye before closing the door behind him. Kim was too furious to even try registering the meaning behind his words.

"Where's Thomas?" Aunt Kerry asked, having finally ended the phone conversation and stepped back to Ground Zero. Her face perked up when she saw another good-looking stranger in the room. "Is that another friend of yours?"

Deliberately ignoring her aunt's question and Tommy's imploring eyes, Kim whipped her head around and faced Tommy. She grabbed him by the wrist and dragged him outside.

Tommy, who had been silence for the most part, finally spoke up when Kim released his hand abruptly in front of the elevators. "What the hell happened in there?"

"What the fuck are you doing here? And what had you done with my father?" Kim scowled angrily, her fingers pointing at his chest.

"That's your father? Did you tell him that I was your boyfriend?" Tommy had the nerve to ask, eliciting another deadly glare from the brunette.

"How did you even know where I lived?"

"And Thomas? It couldn't possibly me?"

Kim hastily pressed the elevator button, blushing crimson. "Forget it. I don't even want to know what you're doing up here," Oh yes, she wanted to get some explanations, but that meant _she_ would have to explain as well. Not only she wasn't in the mood for being sociable, her brain had also failed to make up some reasons. Tommy had practically shoved her deeper into Dave's welcoming arms.

"We need to talk," Tommy said, spinning her around and forcing her to look at him.

"Yeah? I don't care if I left my bra or whatever in your house. You can keep it as a memorabilia," Kim growled and after taking a good grip on his shirt, used her momentum to push him inside the empty elevator and cornered him. She jabbed the close button hard and slipped out before she's trapped inside the metal cage with him.

"That's not why I was here!"

"Goodbye, Tommy,"

"Kim, are you pregna-," His words might have been cut mid-sentenced as the door finally closed, banishing him from her sight, but Kim could make out his unfinished question without troubles. She froze. He knew.

Damn it!

* * *

**: So the tension's mounting and it's only the third chapter! Is Kim really pregnant? Please tell me what your opinion is. I promise things won't always this tough for TK. I hope you enjoy the chapter. I'm fully on vacation now so I hopefully can dedicate myself to do more writings. It's just that sometimes I think that I am the reincarnation of a lazy cat, which I am not proud of. **

**Cheers,  
Yuuri**


	4. Chapter 4

**Footprints**

**Disclaimer:**** I don't own what doesn't belong to me. **

**: Thank you for the reviews. I'm sorry for not updating sooner, I have been back from vacation for a while but I got distracted. Hope you enjoy this chapter :)**

* * *

**Chapter Four**

* * *

Kimberly stared numbly at the pile of neatly wrapped presents that took almost a quarter of her small living room. It was bright and early in the morning when suddenly almost consistent knocks at her door woke her up from her deep slumber. It wasn't an easy sleep, featuring her father chasing her in an endless tunnel, even mentioning her late mother in one point. That and the knocks in her door snapped her in a heartbeat and she jolted awake.

Never, in her twenty six year old life, had she ever seen so many designer carrier-bags from high-ends stores. MiuMiu, Tiffany's, Marc Jacobs, Anna Sui… Anxiously chewing at her lips, she reached out and took the closest carrier to her. Louis Vuitton. While she loved shopping as much as the next girl, there's no way, a Kimberly Hart could possess a Louis Vuitton bag. It's not something that could be easily afforded by a mediocre-paid kindergarten teacher.

She unwrapped the package, was almost afraid to take the expensive hand-bag out. The faint smell of the leather wafted into her nose and her fingers nervously yet excitedly grazed the calfskin handles. _Hot damn_. While she wasn't going to give in, enjoying the feeling of holding an expensive bag was allowed, wasn't it? Besides, Kate knew all the places that sold a similar handbag for only 15 bucks. Sacrificing her pay-checks to buy an original Louis Vuitton handbag while she could get an exact replica was ridiculous, Kimberly thought stubbornly, trying to convince herself. Her motto that she got from Stephen, her gay bestfriend, was: First class design, first class quality, _and_ third class price.

Casting the bag another long, longing glance, Kimberly returned it carefully and put it with the rest of the mountain of presents which needed to be shipped back to Dave as soon as possible. But how? She probably would need to rent a truck or something equally huge to carry all these stuff. Kim sneered. If Dave really thought all the presents could melt her heart and make her marry him willingly, he was wrong, big time. Oh, and that reminded her that she also had to give the ring back.

Truthfully, Dave Winsor was not bad, at all. He was a gorgeous man, taller than Tommy—where the hell that Tommy came from??--, taller than _Jason_, with broad shoulders and curly, sandy blond hair. She hadn't met him in a while, but she recalled he looked like one of the Armani models, with piercing grey eyes and high cheekbones that never smiled while they're doing runways. If only his attitude hadn't been so annoying, he would have been a perfect boyfriend material. It's a shame that he's no more than a low class scumbag. Besides, that man had smoother skin than her! Why would she marry a guy whose skin resembled a porcelain doll's?

To keep her hands from rummaging through the La Perla shopping bag, Kim turned around and walked straight to the bathroom. She had the pregnancy tests waiting for her with the result. Waiting was a complete torture and thus she had left them and gone to check out the stuff Dave had sent to distract her mind. Honestly, she had actually thought that maybe by prolonging the moment of truth, the test would come out negative. It just _had_ to be.

As the sticks came to view, her heart was racing and her feet were shaking like a puddle of jelly. _Please, please, please, let it be negative, let it be negative_… Kim chanted over and over again. Having someone to stand by her side right now would be wonderful, but she hadn't told anyone about this, or about Tommy. Not Kate and not even Jason, the man who she had always considered as her big brother. _Get a grip, just prepare for the worst, Hart._

If it turned out to be negative, she swore she would start doing voluntary works, maybe instead of sending the presents back to Dave, she would ship them off to Ethiopia or Vietnam. Perhaps she could adopt a Cambodian child just like Angelina Jolie and name him Maddox Jr…

It was pink.

There's only one pink line.

"Oh Jesus Christ! I knew it! Oh my God!!" Kim shrieked, abruptly dropping the stick to the sink and swirled around, her fist pumping into the air. Suddenly the sky seemed to be much bluer and she didn't even mind having that single pimple on the right side of her forehead that was evident now that she had pushed her bangs back with a silver clip. "Thank God! You hear that, Tommy Oliver?" She realized she was acting like a crazy person, but it's hard not to when you just discovered that you're not carrying anybody's child. "Go eat that, Oliver. It's NEGATIVE!"

She did her happy dances jubilantly in the tiny bathroom and pushed herself up on the bathroom counter, still giggling uncontrollably. It felt like there's a huge burden being lifted off her shoulders and it was simply, utterly, wonderful.

Okay, so she had said that she would adopt a kid if the test turned out negative, but she wasn't exactly independently wealthy to raise a foreign child that most likely could not speak English fluently. Setting the stick back to the counter, Kim grabbed the other pregnancy test. The ad said that the first one she had used was 99.9 percent accurate but she still bought another one, for a just-in-case situation. She was, in fact, a woman.

"Kim-ber-ley…,"

"Geez!" She jumped, hands clutching her chest tightly as the loud banging kept going on. What time was it now?

"Miss Hart, anybody home?" Kate shouted and knocked again.

Groaning, Kim immediately rushed to her bedroom, flung the pregnancy test into her bag and turned on her heels, ready to open the door before Kate woke up the entire floor. It wouldn't be the first time it happened.

--

Kimberly was still walking in cloud 9 when they arrived at school. In fact, she felt so light-hearted that the idea of getting engaged to Dave didn't seem really bad... meaning that it's still bad but less frustrating since she only had one problem remained now. The truth was, she didn't know which was worse, carrying Tommy's child or having to spend the rest of her life married to Dave. Both options were… unbearable.

She waited until Kate went to her desk before flipping up her cell phone and heading out of the teachers lounge. She had to see Dave. As much as she hated it, it had to be done. He had to know that she wasn't interested—Kim tried not to think about how good it felt to touch a Louis Vuitton bag—and that there's no way she would agree to be with him. Not in this lifetime or the next.

Calling his house would be such a waste of time since she was pretty confident his butler would ask her, his young master's not-so-official- fiancée, to make an appointment even just to talk with him. While she had his cellphone number, she refused to call him in his private line. She's not going to ruin her good mood and she's pretty convinced he's still sleeping anyway. It's a win-win situation.

_We have to talk. Are you free today? Let me know. – Kim. _

She closed the phone with a flick of her thumb and then leaned against the wall. She was generous enough to let him choose the time and place so he'd better reply or else…

--

"Here you go," Tommy unbuckled the seatbelt and set Violet to her feet after he playfully smooched her cheek, making her giggle. In contrary to what he had said to Rocky, he did love to dress up her daughter. He eyed Violet in her new peach overall and pigtails. She was the most adorable little girl around, he mused and practically beamed with fatherly pride.

"That's Suze!" Violet shouted and pointed her fingers at a thin American-African girl who was standing alone near the entrance, clearly waiting for someone. "Can I go now, Daddy?" She turned and looked at him eagerly, cheeks flushed pink with excitement.

"Sure," He leaned down, hugged her and kissed Violet on the forehead. A second later, she dashed towards the taller girl, small hands waving vigorously.

Tommy watched until they got into the building, hand in hand, and sighed. He had to face the elephant in the room. Kimberly owed him tons of explanation. Determined, he shoved his hands into his pocket and ascended the stone stairways.

Since it was still pretty early, the front lobby was not as crowded as it usually was. The hallway now displayed most children's favorite characters on the ceilings and some of the students were now 'aahhing' and 'ohhing' over the painting of Tweety and Silvester. Tommy followed the same route he remembered from Violet's first day when his eyes caught a sudden rush of a pink flash from the corner of his eyes, startling him from the bulletin board that showed some of the wonderful things the students had made.

Speak of the devil.

He stared as Kimberly practically ran towards the ladies room, hands over her mouth. Then he felt a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. It didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out what was happening and he still had his memory of Amy's pregnancy all those years ago.

Morning sickness.

Startled, since he hadn't expected he would get his answer this quick and without having to ask Kim himself, Tommy could only stand there, agape. Was he anxious? Scared? Or even, happy? Anxious because although he might know her_-_, Kim would kill him if she ever heard him saying this, _physically_, they barely knew each other. Hell, they couldn't even finish one conversation without ending up in an argument. One reckless night had dragged themselves into this mess that not even he knew how to solve. This was a baby, for God's sake, not a puppy. His child could be growing inside Kim's body as he was thinking right now. Next, there's her father. He didn't even dare to imagine what Mr. Hart would do to him when he finally knew that Tommy had gotten his daughter pregnant.

"Kimberly," He called out once she emerged from the restroom. The glint in her eyes told him that even if she was surprised to find him there, it was not unexpected.

"Hey you," She greeted with a smile and wiped her mouth with a tissue paper before discarding it to the nearest trash bin. Tommy was still not her most favorite person in the world, especially after ruining her dinner a few days ago, but being a little friendlier towards him coming a bit easier now that the test had confirmed that she wasn't pregnant; that the other night could be chalked in as an ordinary one night stand that would never, ever, happen again.

"Are you okay?" Tommy regarded her with a cautious look, slightly taken aback with her change of attitude. She's being uncharacteristically nice towards him; was that the hormone? "You see, I don't think it's a good idea to be running in those shoes. Do you know that wearing heels for a long time can shorten your Achilles tendon?"

Rolling her eyes, it was Kimberly's turn to give him an incredulous look. "Don't tell me you're here to give me lectures about my shoes… or that was only your excuse to check out my legs?" While she was waiting for him to answer, her cell phone vibrated inside her pocket and she immediately checked the new SMS. Finally, a reply from Dave.

_Hi Darling. How about watching HP 4 tonight? AG Cineplex. 8 pm. Cu there. –Love, D._

Oh, he so did not just call her 'Darling'! Harry Potter? Well, she was a fan of the books and hadn't watched the latest movie actually, so the idea was genuinely tempting. But on second thought, only God knows what Dave would do inside the darkened theatre. The last thing she wanted was for him to rent the whole theatre just to be with her _alone_. The idea made her shiver although it was nearly 30 degrees outside.

"You could have fell or slipped or something…," Tommy went on, not liking the idea. "And endangered your baby," He added in a much softer tone.

Stuffing the mobile phone back into the front pocket of her black slacks, Kim's smile faded and was soon replaced with a frown. Glancing around to make sure no one was listening, she pulled Tommy down until he was face to face with her and hissed, "For your information, mister, I am not pregnant," Damn, it felt good to let it out finally. Her eyes danced in satisfaction and she released his shirt. "So now that it's no longer a dilemma, we can continue with our lives. Pretending as if we don't know each other would be a really good start,"

"But you had morning sickness," He pointed out, confused. "And Kate told me that you had been experiencing a terrible mood swing lately,"

"Kate? Was that where you got your silly ideas about me being pregnant?" One eyebrow lifted and her arms folded protectively across her chest. "Morning sickness?" Sighing, Kim realized that he probably had seen her running towards the ladies room, acting as if she wanted to throw up. Well, she did, but that had nothing to do with being pregnant. She was enjoying her morning brownie when all of a sudden the television showed a documentary about cannibalism in China.

"Well, I assumed-,"

"Look. I'm not, okay? I meant it when I said I wasn't pregnant," Kim replied defiantly, jaw tilting forward. Still sensing his skepticisms, Kim finally said, nose wrinkling in slight annoyance. "You should be happy that you won't get another kid to feed, not from me anyway. But seriously if you don't believe me, I have my proof,"

"What proof?"

"Just hold on for a sec," She still had 10 minutes before the class started and she would make sure that before her first class, she had settled her problems with Tommy, for once and for all. Ignoring Tommy's silly advice, Kim run back to her desk and grabbed her bag. "Come here," Once she'd returned, she gestured at Tommy to follow her into an empty classroom and closed the door behind her. Beaming widely, she took the pregnancy test and held it up high in bravado as though she was holding up a trophy. "One line. Not pregnant,"

She expected him to laugh or jump in delight, but not even a small smile was displayed. Anxiety started to grip her heart and the air around her began to feel heavy. Now she was afraid to turn over the stick; afraid of what she would see. He must be pulling her legs, right? It was negative. _One single line_.

"Kimberly," Tommy started, looking grim like a doctor who was about to deliver a really bad news and Kim felt a sudden prickle of alarm.

"What?" Kim managed to squeak, and the world seemed to stop spinning when Tommy was poised for a few short moments, completely still and even avoided her eyes at one point. Now she's really rattled. She actually hadn't checked that test yet, with Kate tagging along and all. But the first one was negative so she had been pretty confident the other one would have said the same. She looked up at him, aghast. "It can't be! I tried it before and it was _negative_!"

"So the first one was negative while the second one," Tommy stopped, his dark chocolate eyes boring into her lighter ones seriously. The _pregnant _pause was slowly but surely killing her. "Was positive,"

Kim cringed at the word. She really shouldn't have peed on that second stick. Taking a deep breath, her trembling hand turned over the stick and two straight lines stared back at her. "Jesus,"

"Take a deep breath," He dared to suggest, his eyes darkening. "Relax,"

Relax? He asked her to relax? She was pregnant! _Pregnant_! With _his_ baby! How could he stand there and act like there's nothing happened? "I'm not freaked," Kim stammered, too shell-shocked to move. That was a total lie. She was completely freaked. "I'm calm,"

"There's only one option left," Breathed Tommy decisively.

"Which is?" Kim questioned although she had a pretty good guess what his answer was going to be.

"Let's set a doctor appointment,"

* * *

**: A cliffhanger! Sorry if this is a bit short but it's holiday so I'll have more time to write, hopefully. Thanks for reading. The next one would be the reveal, Kim's meeting with Dave and probably a wee bit more interesting thing to come.**

**Cheers,  
Yuuri.**


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